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In this quarterly podcast summary (QPS) episode, Peter summarizes his biggest takeaways from the last three months of guest interviews on the podcast. Peter shares key insights from his discussions with Jeff English on the journey to healing from trauma; Ashley Mason on improving sleep and CBT-I; Sanjay Mehta on misconceptions around radiation and its use in cancer therapy and treating inflammatory conditions (such as arthritis and tendonitis); Sean Mackey on understanding and treating acute and chronic pain; and Susan Desmond-Hellmann on insights from her extraordinary career that pertain to the use of AI in medicine, understanding cancer, and the development of cancer therapeutics. Additionally, Peter shares any behavioral changes he’s made for himself or his patients as a result of these fascinating discussions.

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We discuss:

• Summary of episode topics [1:45];
• Jeff English episode: how trauma shapes behavior and identity, and the value of understanding personal adaptations and working through unresolved emotional wounds [3:45];
• Practical behavioral changes and emotional tools Peter has applied since the Jeff English episode [13:00];
• Ashley Mason episode: treating insomnia using CBT-I and practical behavioral techniques for improving sleep quality [19:15];
• When to seek professional care for sleep issues [30:30];
• Sanjay Mehta episode: radiation therapy’s evolution, its underused potential in treating inflammatory conditions, and the cultural misconceptions surrounding radiation exposure [33:45];
• Peter’s predictions and insights for the upcoming Formula 1 season [43:15];
• Sean Mackey episode: the neuroscience, classifications, and treatment strategies for chronic pain, and the importance of personalized care [57:45];
• Susan Desmond-Hellmann episode: how AI is revolutionizing medicine through advancements in drug development, biomarker discovery, and the potential of training models on private clinical data [1:05:45];
• More from Susan Desmond-Hellmann: why cancer is so difficult to treat with drugs, the promise of immunotherapy, and the long-term hope for systemic treatments [1:14:00]; and
• More.

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View the Show Notes Page for This Episode

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Susan Desmond-Hellmann is a physician and scientist whose remarkable career has spanned clinical medicine, oncology, biotech innovation, and global health leadership. In this episode, Susan shares insights from her journey training in internal medicine during the early AIDS crisis, treating HIV-related cancers in Uganda, and developing groundbreaking cancer therapies like Herceptin and Avastin. She reflects on her leadership roles at UCSF and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, offering lessons on guiding large-scale health initiatives, navigating uncertainty, and fostering scientific innovation. The conversation explores the promise of precision medicine, the integration of patient care and policy, and the evolving role of artificial intelligence in transforming diagnostics, drug development, and global access to care.

We discuss:

• Susan’s medical training, the start of the AIDS epidemic, and the transformative experiences that shaped her career [3:00];
• Susan’s experience working on the frontlines of the HIV/AIDS crisis in Uganda [12:30];
• Susan’s time working in general oncology and her transition to biotech where she helped develop taxol—a top-selling cancer drug [26:30];
• Genentech’s origins, and its groundbreaking use of recombinant DNA to develop biologic drugs [33:45];
• Susan’s move to Genentech, and her pivotal role in the development and success of Herceptin as a groundbreaking therapy in targeted oncology [44:00];
• The rise of antibody-based cancer therapies: the development of Rituxan and Avastin [52:15];
• The step-by-step drug development process and the scientific and strategic challenges involved [1:01:30];
• The ethical and economic controversy surrounding Avastin’s high cost and limited survival benefit [1:12:30];
• Susan’s tenure as chancellor at UCSF: leading during a financially strained period, and her strategic approach to fundraising and institutional development [1:14:45];
• What Susan learned as CEO of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation: strategic processes and decision-making frameworks [1:26:00];
• Susan’s philosophy of leadership and how she sought to build an empowering, values-driven culture at the Gates Foundation [1:35:15];
• The erosion of public trust in science during COVID, the communication failures around controversial treatments like ivermectin, and the need for better public health engagement and transparency [1:39:30];
• The role of AI in transforming medicine: from drug development to cancer detection and beyond [1:53:00]; and
• More.

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